Maybe
by StephanieWithAnA
Summary: This one parter follows the ending of season 5. It's how I wish they had ended that terrible season. Inspiration from the Enrique Iglesias' song, "Maybe." I don't own the rights to either one. Enjoy! Rated M for lemons


**Maybe**

"Anybody home?"

Joey barely glanced up from her packing to find her ex-boyfriend hovering in the doorway. "She's not here, Pacey. Go away."

Pacey frowned and started to leave, but changed his mind. "So how's it going?" he asked as he took a seat on Audreys stripped bed.

Joey raised her head and glared at him harshly. "Didn't you hear me? She left...as in gone...as in she's no longer around ..."

"I know what you mean, Joey. I'm fully aware that Audrey went back home for the summer."

Joey stared at him for a moment before laughing bitterly. "Oh, I get it. You're sad that your girlfriend left you all alone so you need a shoulder to cry on? Forget that."

Pacey watched as Joey stood and walked to the bathroom. She left the door open and he could see that she was filling a box with items from the medicine cabinet. "What is your deal?"

"My deal?" she scoffed. "I have no deal. I'm trying to pack my whole life into these boxes only to be interrupted by my ex-boyfriend, who is now my roommate's …"

"Ex-boyfriend," he finished. "Audrey didn't tell you?"

"That you two broke up? No. I didn't know." For a brief moment, she saw a flicker of pain in his eyes and was overcome with sympathy. But in another brief moment, it had passed.

"Yeah," he murmured as he slowly nodded his head. He was leaning against the doorframe and as he glanced downward, she took the opportunity to gaze at him. She approved of his dress. She wasn't sure what he had done with the Hawaiian shirts and camouflage pants from last year, but the leather jacket, linen shirts and tight jeans he wore this year had suited him perfectly. She was amazed at how a man who was that handsome could become more so.

"So what am I supposed to say here, Pacey?" she asked defensively. It was easier to be mad than deal with how she really felt...especially when he was blocking her in this confined space.

"Well hell, I don't know. Jesus. Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?"

"All of a sudden? This isn't sudden. Ever since you started banging my roommate, we've barely said two words to each other. I walk in and you run out. That spoke volumes."

"You gave us your blessing! You didn't care one way or the other who I was fucking...as long as it wasn't you," he added quietly.

"Well damn, Pacey. When would I have ever had time to get fucked by you? You were always so busy with Melanie and Karen and Gina and…"

"I never fucked you," he told her, his eyes dark and stormy.

"What?" she gasped. "Now youre denying that we ever had sex?" she asked incredulously.

He lifted his arm when she tried to push past him. When she finally gazed up at him, his lips were mere inches from hers. "I never fucked you. What we did...that was never fucking."

She got his meaning, but it didn't make her feel any better. "It's semantics, Pacey." She reached up to remove his arm, but found her hand lingering on his bare skin just a little longer than it should have.

"Maybe...but not to me. What we did was more than that and we both know it."

"I don't know anything," she sighed as she slumped a little and gave up trying to move past him.

"Yes you do," he smiled as he slid two fingers under her chin and raised her gaze to meet his. "You are after all, Miss 4.0."

She smiled softly and then shook her head, pulling away from his touch as she did. "I have book smarts...yeah. But relationships...God, I have no idea what I am doing."

Pacey turned his body sideways and she seized the opportunity to slide past him. "What about us?" he breathed as she swept quickly by.

"Us?" she echoed as she sat down on the end of her bed. "We've been over for a whole year now, Pacey. I don't even think I remember what us was."

"You don't?" he asked softly. His voice had a trace of hurt in it that Joey found quite endearing.

"Well…" she began.

"You can't remember our first kiss?" he asked softly as he approached her. "You can't remember our summer, sailing on True Love?"

"Pacey," she warned, as all those memories came flooding back.

"You don't ever think about all those nights we slept on the deck of True Love and let the moonlight cover us? You don't dream about that night in the ski lodge and the way the fire crackled as we made love?"

"Don't,"she begged as her voice broke.

He sat down beside her, their shoulders touching. "I'm sorry, Joey. I didn't mean to upset you. Hell, you probably only remember me screwing up in school and then they way I screamed at you during our Prom."

"I remember everything," she breathed.

Pacey closed his eyes. He couldn't understand how things could have gotten so screwed up. Then he remembered. He left. "I do too."

"What happened when you came back? I came to see you and we talked. It was wonderful. I wanted us to start over...I wanted…"

"Dawson," he reminded her. "Just like when we came back from our summer, you wanted to assuage your guilt with me the way you did with Dawson then. You needed my approval so you could go after your soul mate."

Joey cringed. "I hate that word. And you're so wrong. I didn't want your approval."

"But you wanted him. You would have had him too if…"

"No. I don't think it could have ever worked between us. There was always something standing in our way."

"Fate?" Pacey asked as he turned a little and glanced at her sideways.

"No. It was you. You were standing in our way," she announced.

Pacey furrowed his brow in confusion as she sat on the floor and began pulling books out from under her bed. "Joey, I never meant to come between you two. I told you to go for it, don't you remember?"

"Yes. I remember thinking that you were really over me. Then I remember crying myself to sleep that night."

Joey he whispered as he reached for her hair. "I thought I was doing the right thing. I didn't want to be like Dawson and lay guilt trips and ultimatums on you. You wanted to be free and…"

"I wanted you!" she declared as she peered up at him with eyes that nearly broke his heart.

Pacey sighed as he slid down the end of her bed. He was now sitting on the floor beside her. She was facing the bed and he was facing the opposite direction. He couldn't look at her. If she were crying...it would kill him. "I guess we really screwed this thing up, huh? Bad timing, bad communication, bad everything."

"Maybe," she said, sniffling and swiping at her tears. "But after everything we went through senior year, we still ended up back in this town together and that always baffled me."

"How so?" he asked as he leaned against her bed and tried to peer into her eyes through the hair that swept across her face.

"You were fighting so hard to run away from me last year…"

"Wait," he interrupted as he held his hand up. "That was not what I wanted to do."

"No? That wasn't why you hopped that plane without even stopping to grab your diploma?"

"Joey…"

"No! You tell me why. You explain to me what was so damned important that you needed to run like that. You never even said goodbye, Pacey."

Pacey lowered his head and rubbed his hands over the front of his jeans. "I felt like...nothing."

"Because of me...I know."

"No. That wasn't it. I felt like nothing because that was the world I created for myself. I only focused on the negative. I complained about schoolwork and the way my family treated me and how I couldn't get into college. I never took the time to realize what I had right in front of me."

"What was that?" she murmured as she turned to face him.

"You!" he declared, smiling. "The best thing about last year was you. Maybe we had too many things working against us or we were just too young to be that wrapped up in each other. I don't know."

"We both did things wrong, Pace. We didn't make the other person the priority...well at least I didn't."

"We can't change anything...we can't go back."

"I know," she lamented softly as she reached for another book under her bed. As soon as her fingers touched the cover, she knew what it was. She was half-tempted not to reveal it in front of him, but just then she needed to see it more than ever.

Pacey glanced over at her when she got quiet. He found her staring at the soft, leather-bound sketchbook in her lap. He recognized it immediately. He had purchased it for her in the Keys and she never went anywhere without it. She had sketched scenery and the ocean and people walking along the crowded streets where they shopped. She had even drawn him a time or two, but she never let him see. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Yes," she replied nodding.

"Aren't you going to look at it?" he asked as his fingers drifted to the cover.

She pulled the book to her chest and hugged it tightly before he had a chance to touch it. Just the smell of it reminded her of him. So many nights, she went to sleep with that book in her arms...her mind on Pacey. "Maybe."

"I'd really like to see it," he urged gently. "You never let me see the sketches of me and I just thought that…"

"I haven't looked at this in a long time. I didn't want to be reminded of…"

"How much I hurt you?" he asked painfully.

"No. I didn't want to be reminded of how much you loved me," she corrected. "If you had stopped loving me or we had cheated on each other...I could have understood why you needed to end it. But you told me that we were going in different directions...that Capeside and Boston were too far apart. Now I've had to live with the fact that you were this close and yet still too far for us to be together." Slowly she turned to face him. "I had to deal with you dating Audrey. I had to deal with you wanting her and knowing that you'd never want me."

"Joey...couldn't you see why I slept with girl after girl? Didn't you realize how unhappy I was?"

"No. You seemed pretty damn happy to me. It seemed like you wanted to be with every girl in Boston except me. Now why was that?"

"I did that because I didn't know what the hell I wanted."

Joey sighed as she passed Pacey the sketchbook and stood to cross the room. "You can have this...I don't need it anymore."

"Joey, I can't take this," he explained as he watched her sit at her desk and empty her top drawer.

"Sure you can," she replied numbly as she reached for a box on the floor.

Pacey frowned as he glanced down at the book and ran his hands over the cover. As soon as he turned to the first page, all the memories of that summer came back to him. He saw sketches of True Love tied to a dock, palm trees swaying in the breeze, a little girl dancing on a sidewalk, and then there were the sketches of Pacey. The first one was of him sleeping in the hammock. He turned the page and found another one of him fishing from the deck of True Love. She had every detail...down to his striped boxers that peeked out from underneath the waistband of his cut-off shorts.

"I love this one," she whispered as she lay down on the bed behind him. She reached over his shoulder and turned the page to the next sketch. Pacey was stretched out on the beach, sunning himself. "You looked really happy there."

"I was," he breathed as he turned his head. When he found her face so close to his, he couldn't resist nuzzling her soft cheek. He raised his head a little and buried his nose in her hair. When he breathed into her ear, she whimpered.

Joey squeezed her eyes shut when he dragged his lips up and down her jaw line. He lifted his right hand and cupped the other side of her face. She tried not to moan when he slid that hand into her hair and raked his fingers over her scalp. She leaned against his mouth, urging him to kiss and suck her earlobes like she always wanted. He licked her soft skin and then shuddered when he felt her hand snake around his back and lift the hem of his shirt.

She skimmed her fingers up and down his skin as he sucked her earlobe into his mouth. Her fingers dipped lower and lower each time until she finally let them rest just inside the waistband of his jeans. It felt so good for him to touch her after so long.

She finally opened her eyes when he shifted around and knelt in front of her. He cupped her face in both of his hands and took a deep breath before kissing her. He started softly, but then he kissed her more passionately...with everything he had in him. His courage grew as he reached under her arms and pulled her off the end of the bed and on top of him.

His hands ran all over her back and sides until she pressed against his chest and broke off the kiss. She gazed down at him with hunger and want in her eyes. He watched her reach for the hem of her shirt and lift it over her head. In a moment, he had reached up and gripped her shoulders, pulling her down on top of him again. She sucked the skin along his collarbone as he unfastened her bra.

"Is this what you want?" he breathed into her ear.

She sat up slowly, rocking against his erection as she did. He licked his lips as she slid the unhooked bra down her arms and tossed it aside. "Is this what you want?"

"Oh God yes," he moaned as he sat up and cupped her breasts in his hands. Her head fell back as he closed his mouth over her erect nipple while his fingers teased the other.

She let him suckle her breast for a moment until she began clawing at his shirt. She needed to feel his bare skin against hers. He allowed her to remove his shirt and then went back to work, licking circles around her nipples. She buried her fingers in his hair and pressed his mouth against her milky skin. She needed more. She needed him.

She could feel her wetness soaking through her panties as he bucked his hips up and let her feel his erection. Grabbing a handful of his hair, she dragged his lips away from her nipple and stood to undress herself. She loved the way his heavy-lidded eyes watched her as she stripped for him. He wriggled out of his pants and boxers, needing to be free of his clothing as well.

She stood before him...naked and needy. When she bent down and began to join him back on the floor, he held her still. He got up on his knees and slid his hands around to cup her ass. He looked at her sex...the way her lips were slick and glistening from her arousal. The tiny tuft of hair on her mound looked soft and for a moment, he just rubbed his nose against it. Then his mouth went lower and she gasped in anticipation.

The moment his tongue flicked out and he began licking her slowly, she wondered if her legs would give out. He tasted her...that sweet taste he had been craving for a year. It was her. She was the one he needed and had been searching for. All along, the one he wanted was right here.

When Joey squeezed his shoulders, he knew he was making her feel incredible. He guided her the few steps back to her bed and urged her to lie back. He lifted her legs and placed them on his shoulders as he dove in and tasted her again. She writhed around on her bed as he sucked her clit and drove his tongue inside her.

"Yesss, Pacey," she cried as her orgasm hit. It pounded through her quickly and left her body shuddering and spasming.

She raised her head after a few minutes so she could watch him lap up her wetness and taste her sweet orgasm. He smiled at her, letting her know that he enjoyed this as much as he always had. Still shaking, she sat up and pulled him into her arms. He buried his face in the crook of her neck and smiled against her skin. He had always loved making her feel good.

He gasped when she pressed him back to the floor and climbed on top of him. She kissed her way up his chest until finally she found his mouth. She licked his lower lip and tasted herself on him. He smiled when she nibbled his lip and thrust her tongue into his mouth. She bucked her hips against him, coating the underside of his erection with her wetness. He groaned; as he needed to be inside her so badly it hurt. With one hand, he felt around for his jeans and found his wallet in the pocket.

She sat up and watched as he removed the small foil package from his wallet and then tore the package open. Backing away from him, she allowed him to sheath his arousal and found herself biting her lower lip in anticipation. "Come here," he growled as he pulled her forward and let the tip of his cock brush against her clit.

She smiled as she lifted her hips and slowly sank down onto his hard length. He groaned as he bit his lower lip so hard that he drew blood. He had forgotten how good it felt to be inside her. He had forgotten how much he loved her.

Joey slammed her hips forward and clawed his chest as she began to ascend that mountain to another orgasm. He moved his hands from her hips to her breasts and watched her mouth curl into a smile as he massaged her breasts gently. He let one hand slide down between them and when his thumb brushed over her clit, she convulsed. She ground her hips against his fingers and hard cock as her head fell back. She moaned in delight as her climax took hold and sent her walls spasming around him.

Pacey watched her hit that peak and then ride him until she came back down. Her hair tumbled all around her face as she leaned forward and gazed down at him again. Slowly, she lowered her head to his chest and let him caress her back softly. "Oh my God...I needed that," she purred.

He laughed as he turned them over and peered into her eyes. She lifted her legs and hooked them behind his back. With her pelvis tilted that way, he was able to slide deep inside of her and both of them felt the difference. He placed his hands on either side of her head and watched her as he ground against her and drove himself closer to the brink. She felt soft and slick and better than he had remembered.

"Oh Joey," he groaned as he pumped in and out of her and let his orgasm break free. It ripped through him as if he hadn't done that since they had been together a year ago. She ran her hands up his chest and slid them behind his neck. She kissed him softly as he continued to shudder and come down from his explosive climax.

He rolled to his side with his arms still wrapped around her. He withdrew himself from her slowly and immediately felt lost without her. Blowing out a deep breath, he lay flat on his back with one arm still around her. She curled up against him and let her hand stroke his chest and stomach. She kept her eyes away from his face as she feared that she would see regret in them if she dared to look.

"Wow," he breathed as he ran his fingers through her silky hair. "That was pretty amazing."

"Yeah," she agreed softly as she raised her head. "And a one time only deal?"

He turned his head to look at her and furrowed his brow as he considered her question. "Is that what you want?" he asked as he slipped away from her and padded to the bathroom.

Joey sat up and pulled her knees to her chest. "I guess that depends on you."

"Me?"

"Yeah," she replied when he returned from the bathroom and slipped his boxers back on. "I think that the fact that I couldn't make one relationship work this year proves that I haven't been able to find someone I want to be with more than you."

He sat down on the floor in front of her and slid one hand up the back of her calf. "I haven't had any luck with that either. I just wonder why we're starting something if you're getting ready to move back to Capeside for the summer." He paused to peer into her sad eyes before asking; "We are starting something here, right?"

"I'd like that, but…"

"No buts. We can do this, Joey. Is this what you want?"

"I want to stay in Boston...I want…"

"Joey?" Pacey asked gently as she lowered her head.

"Just forget it," she sobbed as she turned away and began to dress herself.

He reached for her and then thought better of it. She was as stubborn as ever and he doubted that he could change that now. Sadly, he resigned to dressing himself and leaving her there crying.

When he reached for the door, he heard her whisper.  
"What?" he said as he turned back to face her.

"I said," she murmured as she stood and approached him with only her bra and panties on. "Ask me to stay."

"I...I don't understand. Don't you have to go back to Capeside?"

"No," she replied as she moved closer to him. "I can't stay here, so I'm going back home. But if I had a place to stay...like in the extra bedroom in your new apartment, then I wouldn't have to leave Boston."

Pacey stared at her as she moved even closer. "I don't want you staying in my extra bedroom."

"Oh," she gasped as a fresh set of tears threatened to fall. She quickly turned away from him, but he caught her by the wrist and pulled her into his arms.

"I want you to stay in my bedroom," he breathed before his lips descended upon hers. "I want you in my bed every night and I want your face to be the one I see each morning when I wake up. Is that what you want too?"

Joey leaned in to kiss him again before answering, "Maybe."

"Maybe?" he echoed playfully. "Oh that's it, Potter!"

Joey squealed as Pacey lifted her off her feet and threw her over his shoulder. When he dropped her onto her bed, she pulled him down on top of her and kissed him hungrily. "I think," she whispered when he pulled away. "I think that I want to stay with you."

"You think...or you know?" he asked with a gleam in his eye.

"I know," she declared as she rolled on top of him and covered his face with kisses.

"You know that I love you, right?"

"I do, she smirked. And I love you, too."

**The end**


End file.
